Sources: U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Assessment of the Critical Supply Chains Supporting the U.S. Information and Communications Technology Industry (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. Department of Homeland Security, February 2022); Bureau of Economic Analysis, “Updated Digital Economy Estimates – June 2021,” U.S. Department of Commerce, June 28, 2021; author’s calculations.
Commentary: The digital economy accounted for 9.6 percent of US GDP in 2019, or $2.05 trillion. The industry’s share of total output increased from 7.8 percent in 2005 as the digital economy grew at an annual rate of 3.3 percent per year compared to the general economy’s growth rate of 1.8 percent. This underscores the increasing importance of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the US economy. However, this figure likely understates the digital economy’s contribution to production and economic growth since ICTs are a productivity-enhancing input in the production of other goods and services and provide businesses with greater economies of scale.
